Search - 2005

 
 
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Nov 22, 2005

The 'IC you' card

People are still reeling from September's LDP landslide election, realizing that Koizumi can essentially legislate whatever he wants.
EDITORIALS
Nov 21, 2005

Tax diversion poses challenges

This fiscal year the government is expected to collect about 5.78 trillion yen in revenues from six different taxes paid by automobile and road users. Because these revenues are legally earmarked for road improvement, however, the government cannot use the money for other purposes. This rigidity has...
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Nov 21, 2005

Tweedle-George, tweedle-Jun and their futures in Wonderland

In Alice's world through the looking glass, Tweedledum has "Dum" embroidered on his collar and Tweedledee has "Dee" embroidered likewise. Alice assumes they both have "Tweedle" written on the backs of their collars as well. In our world of 2005, "Dum" would read "George W." and "Dee" would be "Junichiro,"...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 21, 2005

China far way from becoming global technology powerhouse

China has come a long way to show "pockets of excellence" in some fields of science and technology, but it still has a long way to go before it can become a full-blown innovative power, a China expert at a U.S. think tank told a recent symposium in Tokyo.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Nov 20, 2005

The good, the bad and the cliched

A RABBIT'S EYES by Kenjiro Haitani. Vertical, 2005, 288 pp., $14.95 (paper). On first publication, the mellow and delightful 1974 novel "A Rabbit's Eyes," out now in English for the first time, brought Kenjiro Haitani a great deal of fame and a wide following.
BUSINESS
Nov 19, 2005

State special accounts: Why they face scrutiny

A subcommittee of the Finance Ministry's Fiscal System Council recommended Friday that the 31 special accounts in the government's budget be streamlined by absorption into the general account, privatization, or management by independent administrative institutions.
BUSINESS
Nov 19, 2005

BOJ on same page with ruling bloc, Fukui assures

The Bank of Japan's goal is to sustain economic growth, just like the politicians who are decrying any suggested attempt by the central bank to end its ultraloose monetary policy, BOJ Gov. Toshihiko Fukui said Friday.
BUSINESS
Nov 18, 2005

Fuji TV to split NBS into asset manager, radio broadcaster

Fuji Television Network Inc. said Thursday it will split its wholly owned subsidiary Nippon Broadcasting System Inc. into an asset management company, which it will absorb, and a radio broadcasting firm.
JAPAN
Nov 18, 2005

MUFJ profit tops Toyota's, hits record

The estimated consolidated April-September net profit of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. has topped the group net profit of Toyota Motor Corp. to become the largest in Japan, figures released Thursday showed.
BUSINESS
Nov 18, 2005

R&D spending dents Isuzu first-half profit 27%

Isuzu Motors Ltd. said Thursday its group net profit plunged 27.4 percent to 26.02 billion yen in the six months to Sept. 30, mainly due to an increase in research and development spending by the truck maker.
JAPAN
Nov 17, 2005

30 billion yen extra-budget eyed for asbestos victims

The government will propose that 30 billion yen be allocated in the fiscal 2005 supplementary budget to redress asbestos victims not eligible for workers compensation, sources said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Nov 15, 2005

Tower exhibit adds weight to public debt

If you were to stack up 10,000 yen bills equal to the value of the country's estimated public debt in 2005 of 773 trillion yen, the pile would easily reach the stratosphere, according to a government-sponsored exhibit set to open at the Tokyo Tower.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Nov 13, 2005

The freedom myth of freelancing

A NAGGING SENSE OF JOB INSECURITY: The New Reality Facing Japanese Youth, by Yuji Genda, translated by Jean Connell Hoff. Tokyo: International House of Japan/LTCB International Trust, 2005, 203 pp., $35 (cloth). Being young in Japan isn't what it used to be. And many young Japanese are probably rather...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Nov 13, 2005

On the edge and out of our seats

UNSPEAKABLE ACTS: The Avant-garde Theatre of Terayama Shuji and Postwar Japan, by Carol Fischer Sorgenfrei. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, 2005, 340 pp. with illustrations, $45.00 (cloth). Shuji Terayama (1936-1983) remains one of Japan's most intriguing modern writers. Playwright, novelist,...
JAPAN
Nov 12, 2005

Goldman grabs all of Daimler's MMC stake

disposal, and will continue as previously agreed," including joint development and production of engines, DaimlerChrysler said in a statement. Before the completion of the sale of DaimlerChrysler's stake in MMC to Goldman, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. was the top shareholder, with a 13.9 percent...
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 11, 2005

Source: Valentine to stay in Chiba as Marines offer new 4-year deal

Chiba Lotte Marines manager Bobby Valentine has been offered a four-year contract beginning with next season, and Valentine's acceptance of the new deal is imminent, a source familiar with the situation said Thursday at Tokyo Dome.
JAPAN
Nov 11, 2005

Ministry to hike Tamiflu stockpile

The health ministry plans to expand the nation's stockpile of influenza-fighting Tamiflu and come up with measures to deal with any shortages, including prioritizing drug recipients, ministry sources said Thursday.
EDITORIALS
Nov 11, 2005

High hopes for Mr. Mitarai

Mr. Fujio Mitarai, president of Canon Inc., has been picked to succeed Mr. Hiroshi Okuda as head of Nippon Keidanren (the Japan Business Federation). He will start leading the organization dubbed as the "commanding headquarters" of Japan's business community in May 2006.
CULTURE / Music / THE SECOND ROOM
Nov 11, 2005

Psychedelic radar 11.11

Saturday, Nov. 12
BUSINESS
Nov 11, 2005

Revenue climbs at shipping firms

Two Japanese shipping companies said Thursday that revenue grew smoothly in the April-September period as a result of a firm container shipping market, though rising fuel costs affected their profitability.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / THEN AND NOW
Nov 11, 2005

Investigating the history of Hiroo

The Shibuya River starts at Shinjuku Gyoen. Running southward, it makes a big horseshoe curve near Ebisu and heads north to Roppongi. At Ichi-no-hashi, it abruptly bends east to eventually pour into Tokyo Bay. The river's upper reaches are now culverts, but water emerges just south of Shibuya Station...
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Nov 11, 2005

Tokyo FILMeX hits the spot

Thirty-four films selected for their originality and creativity will be showcased in the sixth annual Tokyo FILMeX running Nov. 19-27.
BUSINESS
Nov 11, 2005

MMC sees signs of life in first half

Struggling Mitsubishi Motors Corp. said Thursday its losses narrowed significantly in the first half of fiscal 2005.
BUSINESS
Nov 11, 2005

Softbank rides broadband to 4.4 billion yen operating profit

Softbank Corp. said Thursday it posted its first first-half operating profit in five years, helped by steady growth in its high-speed Internet service.
JAPAN
Nov 10, 2005

Fighters scrambled record 30 times to intercept Chinese planes

Japanese fighter jets have been scrambled 30 times to turn away Chinese planes approaching Japan's airspace in the last seven months, more than twice the 13 times in the same period last year, officials said Wednesday.

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